Omid Safi – Sufi Heart – Ep. 29 – “Islam, Iman, Ihsan”, Love’s Journey in Islamic Spirituality

Pushing beyond the bare minimum of religiosity, Omid Safi inspires listeners to deepen their faith into an ecstatic adoration of God.

“God is to be found here and now…the divine simply is not to be experienced in the afterlife, in the heavenly realms, in the celestial realm. Here and now where you are, where we are, we can come to experience Allah.” Omid Safi

In this episode of Sufi Heart, Omid Safi elucidates :
  • Islam and the unity of Allah
  • Iman as faith and Ihsan as virtue
  • Spirituality and Aesthetics
  • Doing what is required of us through religion
  • How Habib (the chosen one) inspired a deeper level of faith
  • How we can aspire to be in a state of love and adoration
  • The eyes of the heart versus the eyes of the head
  • Worshiping God for more than just salvation
  • Islamic Saints and their stories of experiencing Allah through beauty
  • Recognizing the unwavering divine presence of God
  • The eternal now and present moment awareness
  • Undivided attention as an act of love
  • Courtesy and recognizing our individual journeys
  • Being a beautiful witness

“What is death other than the lifting of one last veil? Here we are with Allah. There we are with Allah. What room is there for fear or even hope for that matter? There is only being with Allah. Being with the beloved.” – Omid Safi

About Omid Safi:

Dr. Omid Safi is director of Duke University’s Islamic Studies Center. He specializes in the study of Islamic mysticism and contemporary Islam and frequently writes on liberationist traditions of Dr. King, Malcolm X, and is committed to traditions that link together love and justice.

He leads spiritual tours every year to Turkey, Morocco, or other countries, to study the rich multiple religious traditions there. The trips are open to everyone, from every country.

You can join Omid on one of his heart-centered and spiritually-focused educational tours of:
  • Mecca and Medina Umrah program:  December 14-21st, 2023.  [For Muslim participants]
  • Morocco:   April 13-22nd, 2024.
  • Turkey:  somewhere in late May to early June, 2024.
Further information is available at Illuminated Courses & Tours where you can also find information on virtual courses, spiritual talks, and more.
Dive into more episodes from Omid:
Dr. Omid Safi introduces the Sufi Heart Podcast and explores the path of radical love found in the Sufi tradition, on Sufi Heart Ep. 1
Omid reflects on the teachings of social activist Vincent Harding and examines the way that love sparks the flame of justice within us, on Sufi Heart Ep. 3
Omid explores how can we develop a practice of love that starts with ourselves and extends into the world, on Sufi Heart Ep. 5
Love, Justice, and Tenderness with Ankhet Rumi & Dr. Omid Safi